Wireless Home Networking - Index of

Chapter 1: Introducing Wireless Home Networking
A computer network lets you share those electronic files between two or more
computers. For example, you can create a Word document on your computer,
and your spouse, roommate, child, sibling, or whoever can pull the same document
up on his or her computer over the network. With the right programs,
you can even view the same documents at the same time!
But here’s where we get into semantics: What’s a computer? Your car has more
computing and networking capability than the early moon rockets. Your stereo
is increasingly looking like a computer with a black matte finish. Even your
refrigerator and microwave are getting onboard computing capabilities — and
they all have files and information that need to be shared.
The old way of moving files between computers and computing devices
involved copying the files to a floppy disk and then carrying the disk to the
other computer. Computer geeks call this method of copying and transferring
files the sneakernet approach. In contrast, copying files between computers
is easy to do over a home network and with no need for floppy disks (or
sneakers).
What’s interesting is that more computers and devices are getting “used to”
talking to one another over networks in an automated fashion. A common
application is synchronization, where two devices talk to one another and
make the appropriate updates to each other’s stored information so that
they’re current with one another. For example, Microsoft’s Zune portable
media player (www.zune.net) is in many ways similar to Apple’s iPod, with
one big exception: the Zune’s wireless capabilities. Whenever you put your
Zune in its charger base, it connects across your wireless network and automatically
syncs new content (music, audiobooks, podcasts, and videos) from
your PC. This means you always have that new content at your fingertips —
literally — without having to lift a finger.
Printer and peripheral sharing
Businesses with computer networks have discovered a major benefit: sharing
printers. Companies invest in high-speed, high-capacity printers that are
shared by many employees. Sometimes an entire department shares a single
printer, or perhaps a cluster of printers is located in an area set aside for
printers, copy machines, and fax machines.
Just like in a business network, all the computers on your home network can
share the printers on your network. The cost-benefit of shared printers in a
home network is certainly not as dramatic as in a business, but the opportunity
to save money by sharing printers is clearly one of the real benefits of
setting up a home network. Figure 1-1 depicts a network through which three
personal computers can share the same printer.
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